Twitter Reactions: Glenn Maxwell, Harshal Patel star in RCB's morale-boosting victory against RR
The home side won the match by seven runs in a hard-fought contest.
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Royal Challengers Bangalore registered their second successive victory after thwarting table toppers Rajasthan Royals in a thrilling encounter at the Chinnaswamy. Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell laid the foundation of the victory with their swift half-centuries before the bowlers came to the fore in the second innings.
A star-studded Rajasthan Royals' batting line-up were the favourites to chase down a par total set by their opponents. However, they were jolted early in the chase when star Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj uprooted Jos Buttler's middle stump in his very first over of the match. Following the dismissal of the influential English opener, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Devdutt Padikkal steadied the ship for their side.
The young Indian pair added 98 runs for the second wicket to shift the momentum in their side's favour. However, Padikkal's dismissal after a brisk half-century, followed by Jaiswal's demise, saw the home side claw their way back into the contest. Rajasthan skipper Sanju Samson also departed after a brief stay, leaving the job with the dangerous Shimron Hetmyer.
But the hard-hitting southpaw failed to leave his mark on the game, and the young Dhruv Jurel kept his side in the hunt with a brilliant cameo. However, the home side were impeccable with the ball in the dying stages of the match, registering their second successive victory.
RCB struggled after half-centuries from Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell
It was the visiting skipper Sanju Samson, who won the toss and elected to bowl first on a seemingly flat track at the Chinnaswamy. His decision turned out to be a masterstroke as Trent Boult dismissed RCB's star batter, Virat Kohli, for a golden duck to continue his exceptional record with the new ball.
Shahbaz Ahmed's promotion in the batting order did not help the home side's cause either, as he became Boult's second victim in the powerplay. That is when Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell joined hands to stitch together an explosive stand for the third wicket. Both the batters registered quick-fire half-centuries in a breezy 127-run partnership.
The duo were threatening to take the home side to a total in excess of 200 runs, but their departure in quick succession completely derailed RCB's batting innings. Barring Du Plessis and Maxwell, only Dinesh Karthik managed to reach double figures in the first innings as a brilliant death-bowling performance by the visitors restricted RCB to 189 runs.
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